Derek Chisora halted his run of three straight defeats to beat Kubrat Pulev by a split decision and silence his doubters at the O2 Arena in London.
Two veterans of the sport did battle for a second time, having fought in Hamburg back in 2016, amid talk of what they had left to achieve in boxing. Pulev had won the first meeting by a split decision but was second best for much of the 12 rounds, with Chisora connecting a number of times with his right to make his 45th professional fight one to remember back in the capital.
It earned the 38-year-old heavyweight success after the judges scored the bout many predicted would send him into retirement 112-116, 116-112 and 116-114. The combined age of the duo was 79 but Chisora had faced Oleksandr Usyk in 2020 while Pulev was knocked out by Anthony Joshua at the end of the same year to show their desire to still go toe-to-toe with the best in the business. It was a welcome return to London for “Del Boy’ after bouts with Joseph Parker in Manchester and the former Finchley amateur boasted a strong record of six wins from seven at the O2 Arena. PA
Re-live updates from the main event and undercard, below.
